AS HISTORYWeek 1 – 2

THE GREAT POWERS

The Balance of Power• While Germany may have been the most powerful state on the Continent, no country could dominate Europe by itself. •During the 19th century Europe developed a system of military and political balance. This system became known as the balance of power system.

•If any one country threatened to grow in power then one or a group of other country’s would band together in order to ensure the balance would not change too drastically.

• The system could work because Europe was a ‘multi-polar’ international system.

Great Britain• Had a parliamentary system and a ‘limited’ monarchy constrained by its constitution.

• Had a vast Empire spanning the globe, including India, Canada, South Africa, Australia and Malaysia.

• The greatest economic powerhouse. Carried out a huge portion of the global trade due to its empire and its massive ocean-going fleet. Had been the first country to industrialise.

• Was by far the greatest naval power in the world. It used this naval power to protect its own empire and also to project power against far-away countries that defied it.

Great Britain•Policy of “splendid isolation” from the rest of the world.

• Wanted to maintain a balance of power so that no one country got too powerful on the continent.

• Areas of strategic interest:• Belgium/English Channel• Dardenelles Straits/Mediterranean

• Its economic might and its empire meant that it was looked upon as the greatest power in the world at the time.

Belgium & The English Channel

The Dardenelles Straits

Germany• Was a newly formed country.

• United through the use of masterful diplomacy and military power by the Chancellor of Prussia (later chancellor of Germany), Otto von Bismarck.

• Bismarck was a conservative as was the newly crowned Emperor (Kaiser) of a united Germany, William (Wilhelm) I.

• Had the most powerful army on the European continent.

• Also had the largest population (not including Russia), a strong economy and a highly educated population because of an excellent school system.

Germany• Bismarck wanted to consolidate Germany’s position and knew France would want revenge for its defeat.

• His foreign policy was directed towards building closer relations with other European powers and keeping France isolated.

• Bismarck understood that people would no longer accept an absolute monarchy for a government.

•Germany had a constitution, (but one that left a large degree of power in the hands of the Emperor) and an elected parliament called the Reichstag. • Bismarck rightly predicted that most rural voters would mostly vote for noble landlords who were very conservative and supported the monarchy.

Germany• But even when the liberals dominated the Reichstag, Bismarck would get the Kaiser to use his executive powers to override what they wanted and implement his policies.

• “Not through speeches and majority decisions will the great questions of the day be decided... but by iron and blood.”

• But with continued urbanization and a growing working class, liberal and socialist ideas continued to spread.

• The rulers of most European countries would have their hands full in trying to balance the demands from below of a rapidly changing society while trying to maintain the position of the old elite in society.

Socialism• Industrialisation led to an increase in wealth but it also led to an increase in misery and poverty.

• Huge numbers of people moved to towns and cities looking for work and were employed in factories, dockyards and construction.

• But the huge profits from their work usually went in to the hands of a few while they lived and worked in terrible conditions.

• Thinkers and writers began to develop criticisms of this situation and argued that society wealth needs to be divided more equally. Examples: Prodhoun, Bakunin and most the influential of all was Karl Marx.

•Political movements and parties grew up that demanded social justice and came to be known as socialists.

France• France had for a long time been the preeminent country in Europe, culturally, politically and militarily.

• But it other ways it was considered a power in decline.

• In the 18th century it had lost out in a global contest for empire with the British.

•Germany defeated France in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71 which showed France was no longer the strongest military power on the European continent either.

• France had lost territory to Germany and many Frenchmen hoped to get it back and get revenge against Germany in the process. It was clear though that France would need an ally if it were to overcome Germany in a European war.

France• Some believed that France should focus on building up its empire and that this would increase its strength and prestige and reverse the process of decline.

• France had colonies in Algeria (in North Africa), Senegal (west Africa) and had begun to build up an empire in Indochina (Vietnam). • After the war the Third Republic was set up. Monarchy was abolished and the government was based on a parliamentary system. •But generally this produced weak coalition governments that were unable to stay in power for long.

Russia• Russia was the largest country in the world at the time. It was ruled by an emperor, called a Tsar (or Czar) who was an absolute monarch.

Expanding throughout the 19th century, taking over Central Asia (Kazakhistan, Uzbekistan) and putting pressure on China, Persia (Iran) and the Ottoman Empire.

Russia• British felt their Indian empire was threatened, and wanted to prevent further Russian expansionism.

•The British and Russian contest for supremacy in Central Asia has sometimes been called ‘The Great Game’.

Russia• Russia was the most backward of the European countries. Mostly agricultural. It was considered culturally backward. But because of its size and strength it was still considered one of the Great Powers.

• Bad conditions of peasants. They had been serfs, which was a kind of slavery for many years, but in 1861 the Tsar had emancipated (freed) the serfs and abolished serfdom.

• The Russians were ethnically Slavs. As nationalism grew in the 19th century, a form of Slavic nationalism called Pan-slavism grew up whereby Russians felt that they should look out for the interests of other Slavic people such as Serbians, Slovaks, etc. who did not have their own countries and were minorities in countries ruled by the Austro-Hungarians or Ottomans.

Pan-Slavism

North Slavs

East Slavs

South Slavs

Austria-Hungary

• The Austro-Hungarian empire tried hard to resist the forces of liberalism and nationalism.

• The Hapsburg Emperor a dual-monarchy – two kingdoms, of Austria and Hungary, and each of these contained peoples from a variety of different ethnic, cultural and linguistic groups.

• The Empire included Austrians (who were German), Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Serbians, Bosnians, Croatians, Romanians, Poles, Italians – and with the growth and spread of nationalism, some of these people were beginning to demand a greater say in the government or in some cases independence altogether.

• Nationalism threatened the very existence of what was a multi-national empire.

Austria-Hungary

Ottoman Empire• The Ottoman empire was also multi-national.

• Over the past 2 centuries had started fading in strength while also falling behind most of the other European states scientifically and economically.

• Losing chunks of its territory, mostly to Russia, but also to the Austro-Hungarian empire, and parts of it had managed to achieve independence in the 19th century, such as Greece and Serbia. •It was ruled by a Sultan (Caliph) and at would undergo attempts at modernization at various times in the 19th century, but it was still an absolute monarchy.

• Supported at various times by countries who wanted to prevent Russian expansionism, especially Britain.

The BalkansThe question of what to do about the restive European territories of the Ottoman Empire (called the Balkans), where there were nationalist uprisings against the Turks and whose independence was sought after by Pan-slavic Russians but opposed by Britain and Austria-Hungary became known as ‘The Eastern Question’.

The Balkans would continue to be source of tension between these Great Powers for the next 40 years.

Italy• For hundreds of years Italy had been divided in to multiple kingdoms and had been dominated by the European powers of France and Austria-Hungary.

• But like Germany it had been united into one by growing nationalism, good diplomacy and some foreign help.

• It was a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament.

• It was still seen as a second rank power and increasingly its leaders wanted to try and show that it was a great power.

USA• Had been through a major Civil War in the 1860s over the issue of slavery, which it finally abolished.

• Had started off as a collection of 13 states on the eastern coast and had been gradually expanding westward until it reached California and the west coast.

• Had a republican form of government – with an elected president and congress.

• Had a large economy – based on agriculture in the south and industry in the north. By 1871 was undergoing Reconstruction after the damages of war and its economy was expanding quickly.

Japan• In the 1600s Japan had severely restricted its contact with the outside world, but by the 1840s, there was a growing realization that they needed to modernize if they were to resist foreign domination.

• The point had been driven home by the arrival of American and European ships which had forced Japan to open their harbours and allow foreign trade at gunpoint.

• The old government was overthrown and the new Meiji government set up under the Emperor in 1868 and with a constitution and parliament.

• Experts were sent out to study western learning in every field from chemistry to industry, to education systems and government.

• After this Japan would start rapidly modernizing itself.